Numerous errors on new build

[drstupid]

Hi Folks,

I'm hoping someone can help me with this, as i've pretty much exhausted all my ideas.

I built a system from scratch about a month ago after my old desktop went down over Christmas. The only old components i used were the case and my old IDE drives.
The system was fine for three weeks (except for intermittent [twice daily appx] system beeps [single short-ish beep] which seemed to have no effect on its stability), but then while doing something else in the room I heard one of the HD's making a nasty searching noise. The problems seemed to start after this although it may just be co-incidence. I developed errors reading the two old IDE drives that I was running from a PCIe card (i found the card to be not properly seated, which probably caused this, but fixing that or removing it didn't fix the overall issues), but after many different attemps to change their connection to mobo/singly connecting etc. I managed to recover all the data. I couldn't get 1% of the data from one drive, but after a week or so, it suddenly let me into the folders it said were corrupted too.

The thing is, the computer's been as stable as a blind unicyclist since this started happening. I'm getting hangs accompanied by weird graphics glitches on screen, and a variety of BSOD messages that don't hang around long enough to get much info from them (pretty sure the BIOS is set to not auto-reboot, but i'll check again). These BSOD's and hangs can occur anywhere in the process, from the BIOS screen to 24 hours into using the PC... although latterly i'm struggling to even get to the desktop which is why it's taken me a week to get into the minidumps. The boot up process seems to be a lot longer than usual too.

Basically, I figure this is a hardware issue of some sort, and as the components are all relatively new I can probably get them replaced so what i'm wanting is help determining which component is causing the probs. My guess would be the memory, but the Windows memchecking thing doesn't return anything untoward.

I'll have to attach the minidumps later as they're on a pendrive that I don't have with me, but I can list some of the errors and give you a basic system spec if this will help.

Windows7 Ultimate 64bit
Asus M4A78LT-M LE
Phenom II x2 555
2x2Gb Corsair DDR3 RAM (used together and individually to test, with similar results)
500W 'Best Value' PSU
Startech PCIe IDE card
Samsung 1Tb HD
2x Maxtor 80Gb HD's
LG(?) DVDROM Drive

I also have my old system drive with an XP install on, which is usually unplugged but has been shown to work with the new mobo, and has also shown the same errors when used as an alternative OS. This to me excludes the OS as the problem... correct me if i'm wrong.

Right, the BSOD errors...
The first i noticed was a 0x0000001A (have 99% of the refenrence #'s too if they'd help) which i'm led to believe is a MEMORY_MANAGEMENT error.

The other ones that have stayed up long enough for me to notice are :
IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL
SYSTEM_SERVICE_EXCEPTION
0X0000007E

I'll attach the minidumps to a reply in about an hour and a half in case they'll help.

Thanks in advance.
DrStupid

 

[drstupid]

Ok, tried to attach the minidumps, but they're 250kb and the site limit seems to be 200kb.
I'm open to suggestions if you feel this info would be helpful.

 

[Route44]

There is a Zip option in the Manage Attachments button that will compress your files allowing attachment. You can zip up to five minidump files per Zip file. Only give us your most recent.

 

[drstupid]

Hi Route44, thanks for the reply.
Is the zip option a function on your website? because i can't find it if it is.
I don't have a zip program on the laptop at the moment. I used to have winrar, but i gather you don't accept .rar format anyway.
Is there a good free one anywhere?

 

[Route44]

The next time you go to post scroll down and you will find a Manage Attachments button. Click that on and you will see a Zip option provided by TechSpot. I can open winrar. if needed.

 

[drstupid]

Still couldn't see anything that allowed me to zip using the site (maybe it was blocked by 'no-script', but I'm pretty sure I turned all the scrips for the site on [and there are a lot]).
I downloaded 7-zip though, so here's the last minidump I had access to (although probably not the actual last to be created). I have four more from the preceeding week if you want to see any more.

Also got a 0x0000003B error since we last spoke.
Cheers

 

[Route44]

My trusty ALZip opened it just fine.

Do a harddrive analysis. See this link: http://ars.samsung.com/customer/usa...?AT_ID=5539&PROD_ID=26&PG_ID=-1&PROD_SUB_ID=0

 

[Coodu]

Yeah, you're getting all sorts of crazy errors.

Try diagnostics on your HDD and a memtest too wouldn't hurt. My philosophy on this sort of thing is:

Check hardware, if fault replace as needed, else format. Much like programming!

 

[drstupid]

Hi guys, cheers for the replies.
If i can get access to the Samsung HD, then i'll try to run the diagnostic, however access is intermittent at best.

If the memtest thing is the one that's integrated into Windows, then i've run it with both sticks in, and in both single stick combinations without any errors showing up.

Given that i'm getting crashes during BIOS too, I think it's definitely a hardware thing (not saying this won't have corrupted my Win7 install though), so that, i guess, is the crux of the problem.... find which bit of hardware is causing this so i can replace it/them.

 

[Route44]

The thing about harddrive diagnostics is if it is burned to a CD is it will engage before Windows even loads. Often you need your DVD drive as first bootable in the BIOS.

 

[drstupid]

My only reservation about using the utility is that it states I should back up my data before running it. Not only does access make this hard, but I don't have the space elsewhere and the Samsung currently has backups of all my other HD's on, so don't really want to mess them up!

Would the fact that I can boot XP from another HD not rule out the Samsung as a problem, as the errors still occur when booting from that drive too?

 

[drstupid]

Also, I think that utility is for older Samsung drives, but i may be wrong.
Mine's a Samsung 1TB Spinpoint F3 7200rpm SATA 3Gb/s 32MB

 

[Mark56]

Was the Windows 7 64bit a clean install when you built the system? did you install the chipset drivers for the new mobo on the windows 7 and the XP?

Are there any yellow warnings when you look in Device Manager when running either OS?

 

[drstupid]

Hi Mark56
Yeah, the Win7 was a clean install onto a new drive (the Samsung). The chipset drivers were definitely installed to the Win7 OS, but couldn't be 100% sure with the XP. There are Asus tools etc. on the XP OS, so I can't see why I'd have installed them and not the chipset drivers.
To be honest, I was very surprised to see the XP drive boot. I figured as i'd changed mobo that it would just refuse, but as I said in the OP, it worked fine for as long as the system itself was error free. Obviously I didn't put it through any sort of rigourous tests as I intended to use Win7 as the normal OS.

As for device manager, I had trouble with my external western digital drives being recognised(which seems to be a common complaint) but eventually got them working. These would occasionally be present as warnings in device manager. But recent(ish) checks have revealed no yellow warnings in device manager.

 

[Coodu]

If you are still interested in doing some doagnostic's Seagate's "SeaTools" should work fine in a Windows environment, perhaps you could download and run it and see how it goes. (EXE Setup, Not DOS Boot version)

However, memtest is required to have a bootcd created for it to be able to be used.

My theory behind this is if you can isolate your HDD or Memory not being the problem, then a format should resolve the issue

 

[Mark56]

Have you got automatic update turned on for XP and Win7. XP should be on SP3 and Win7 should be on SP1. In the minidump Win7 is not showing SP1 and you have the RTM which is the first official release so the updates are important.

I would get alll the updates installed and see how it goes, if the problems persist I would then run the manufacturers hard drive diagnostics using the ISO for CD. Follow this guide.

I would also have a look in your Bios set up. Make sure you have not got SATA/RAID enabled and that the drives are both running in IDE mode. Also check you have the correct voltage set for your RAM.

Identify the make of your hard drive and then use one of the links below to get the manufacturers diagnostic for ISO CD. Burn the image file to a CD, boot the PC with the disc in the drive and run the diagnostics. You first need to set the CD drive to 1st in the boot order in the Bios setup.

If you do not have an image burner use this free software to make the CD.

http://www.isoimageburner.com/

Samsung: http://www.samsung.com/global/business/hdd/support/downloads/support_in_es.html

Seagate, Maxtor & Quantum:http://www.seagate.com/www/en-us/support/downloads

 

[drstupid]

Just a final update in case someone else has this sort of problem...
I wasn't aware you could use EITHER memory slot in a one stick configuration!
Upon testing the system using the second slot only... the system remained stable.
Therefore the problem was clearly with the primary memory slot on the motherboard.

If you are still interested in doing some doagnostic's Seagate's "SeaTools" should work fine in a Windows environment, perhaps you could download and run it and see how it goes. (EXE Setup, Not DOS Boot version)

However, memtest is required to have a bootcd created for it to be able to be used.

My theory behind this is if you can isolate your HDD or Memory not being the problem, then a format should resolve the issue

Thanks to the stable system, I was able to run Sea Tools, and unsurprisingly everything came up fine. As I've just got a new board (which is 99% the same as the original) and the OS boots and works fine at the moment, I don't think a format would've fixed it anyway.

Have you got automatic update turned on for XP and Win7. XP should be on SP3 and Win7 should be on SP1. In the minidump Win7 is not showing SP1 and you have the RTM which is the first official release so the updates are important.

I would get alll the updates installed and see how it goes, if the problems persist I would then run the manufacturers hard drive diagnostics using the ISO for CD. Follow this guide.

I would also have a look in your Bios set up. Make sure you have not got SATA/RAID enabled and that the drives are both running in IDE mode. Also check you have the correct voltage set for your RAM.

Generally speaking I'm of the 'if it's not broke, don't fix it' philosophy, and while I can see the inherent advantages of installing the latest updates etc., I also feel they can create more problems and conflicts than they solve when there's already a problem with the system. Just my opinion though, and I know most will disagree.

So, to conclude, this was a hardware problem with the memory slot on the motherboard.

Many thanks for your help guys, you provide an invaluable service. Cheers.

 

[Mark56]

It may not have been a bad memory slot, it might have been oxidised contacts, moving the RAM to another slot made better contact, did you ever try moving the RAM back again as it may well have been Ok.

Keeping your system up to date with windows updates is more likely to fix conflicts than cause them and you should keep in mind that the updates also patch up security holes.

Intentionally avoiding Windows Updates is no wiser than refusing to update your Anti Virus software. A great number of updates are purely for the continued security of your system, why else would Microsoft keep producing them.

XP will be wide open to attack if you do not update it to SP3. Previous Service Pack levels are no longer supported by Microsoft and therefore are not protected against any new threats. That would be like going on line with no Anti Virus or Firewall. Cyber crime takes a lot of money from innocent people and there profits are greatly aided by unprotected PC's. It costs nothing to get the updates but it may cost you if you don't.

 

[drstupid]

Hi Mark
Both the motherboard and the memory were brand new, so I doubt oxidised contacts was the issue, however it could be with someone else's similar problem I guess.

While I would generally agree with what you say regarding OS updates, I've had several backwards compatability issues with software when new updates are installed. When the system is down for some reason I find troubleshooting to be more efficient when I don't start introducing new variables. While I also agree that some updates may fix some problems... I've never had a critical error that has been fixed by the installation of a Microsoft update!

The Win7 install was very new, and therefore I hadn't had a chance to install any relevant updates before the problems started (probably laziness on my part) although as it worked fine for 3 weeks, I was fairly certain that it wasn't a critical issue, and the XP install is just an old OS drive to use as a backup OS if the Win7 install fails, allowing me access to data for work etc. As I have no intention of running this as a regular OS, I don't see the point in risking compatability issues by installing SP3. (the drive isn't even plugged in until needed by the way)

Anyway, once again, many thanks for all your help.

 

[Mark56]

Your welcome and glad you found the problem.